Organopolysilanes and their methods of preparation are generally known and described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,399,223 to Atwell et al in which organopolysilanes having up to seven silicon atoms per molecule are produced in very low yields. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 4,374,793 to Koga et al describes the preparation of organopolysilanes which are unmeltable and insoluble.
A two-stage method for preparing organopolysilanes having SiOC-bonded methoxy groups is described in U.S. Re. Pat. No. 31,447 to Baney et al, in which methylhalodisilanes are treated with catalysts such as (C.sub.4 H.sub.9).sub.4 P.sup.+ Cl.sup.- to form polyhalosilanes. The resultant polyhalosilanes are then reacted with an alkoxylating reagent in an anhydrous environment to form the polysilane.
It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a single stage method for preparing organopolysilanes which are meltable and soluble in an organic solvent. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing organopolysilanes having more than seven silicon atoms per molecule and which have a monomodal and symmetric molecular weight distribution. Still another object of the present invention is to provide organopolysilanes which are free of Si-bonded halogen and which do not self-ignite when exposed to air. A further object of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing organopolysilanes which absorb ultraviolet light having a wave length of less than 360 nanometers and which can be crosslinked by such light. A still further object of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing organopolysilanes having the aforementioned characteristics in relatively high yields.